Christian Waba is an 18 year-old-guy born in Vienna who moved close to the Hungarian border at the Neusiedl Lake when he was six because of his parents’ job. He recently graduated from high school, loves travelling, the Opera and, as an usual teen, hanging out with friends and drinking.
Living so close to the border since you were a child, how was your connection to Hungary?
My mom is originally from Budapest and she moved to Austria when she was around 20. She worked as a waitress in the finest club at the border where my father was the DJ and after a while they started a family. Besides that, I did not have much connection. My grandfather lives in Hungary, but the rest of my Hungarian family is spread around the world. The best part is that now I live on the same street where my mom used to live.
What are the main differences you see between Austria and Hungary?
Vienna is part of the globalization so it lost a bit of its traditional feeling for me. Budapest is special because it conserves the stories behind the city: here you can find a very unique lifestyle and also some unique architecture. Apart from that, the towns of the Austrian countryside are usually very small so living in Budapest is a major change for me as it is a capital city and you get a completely different feeling of life. Here not everyone knows you; I like how you are “one of many” here and you are a stranger. It gives you more freedom.
What kind of Hungarian traditions did you grow up with?
There was this great thing where I had to sprinkle my mom with water every year during Easter, I loved it and it was funny and new for me as we did not have it in Austria. I didn’t really grow up with many traditions, neither Hungarian nor Austrian. My family is very liberal.
Did you have any gay life in your hometown?
Absolutely not! We don’t even have straight clubs. For me, gay life only started after the Eurovision in Vienna in 2014. In Vienna there is a great gay scene and there is also a gay district so we went there to hang out and we did everything we could find with my best friend who is a lesbian. We were exploring all around the city.
And what brought you to Hungary?
I am an intern at a Human Rights NGO called European Roma Rights Center, where I joined the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service. You can join this organization as a way of doing the obligatory military service you have to do in my country. Besides this, as a personal hobby, I organize events and now we are doing a European Tour of an annual party series and goes around different European cities. It will start in Budapest and then we go to Paris, Milan, Munich, Brussels and Nice. In Budapest it will be happening on 27th of February and Tamara Mascara, one of Conchita Wurst’s friends, will be a guest DJ. It is a party for everyone, we don’t want to promote it as a gay event but more like a party for anyone who wants to have a good time without the need of using labels.
What is your favorite part of living in Budapest?
The people I’ve met here. I got in touch with so many different cultures and nationalities and most of them became very close friends. That, and the cafés and teahouses you find in random streets. Another thing I really like is that in Vienna people are very much into appearances, the money and how you look. Here there is more freedom and you are just who you are.
Which teahouses or coffee places would you recommend?
I love Mozaik close to Deák Ferenc tér along Király utca. I love this 24/7 breakfast thing they have! Last time I had it at 8:00 pm. Another one is kotyoGO two blocks away from the Nyugati metro station. The staff is very nice and welcoming there. I usually stay there an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening. It is beautiful and gay friendly.
What are your future plans?
I am moving to Paris in the beginning of March to finish my obligatory military service with the Holocaust Memorial Service. I believe that the event series will turn out to be something very good and I’d like to have it for a couple of years so I am focused on it. I am still trying to decide if I want to study Stage Directing or Business Management; I have to make that decision soon. I would love to move to London one day.
What do you think is missing in the gay life of Budapest?
The openness towards other people, especially foreigners. If you walk hand in hand with a guy you will be insulted and people still don’t acknowledge that it is a reality. That “reality check” that America had still needs to happen in Eastern Europe and people should not be scared of meeting a gay person on the street. I think we should confront this behavior because that’s how people will start accept the community. It works the same way as the refugee crisis that happened recently: in Austria we have a huge Islamic population so people are used to people from this culture and when the problem blew up people were more open to help and to provide support. People here need to see that being gay is normal and not something they can simply ignore or take away from the streets, since it is a reality.
What have you learned in Budapest?
I have learned to be with myself, I learned about human rights, to understand and respect people with different cultural backgrounds. But more importantly, I learned that you should do what you want as long as it is not hurting others and that you should simply respect and stand up for yourself.
Germán Henao
